The move was first reported in the top-selling Yediot Aharonot daily, which said the decision was taken as a result of the calm in the West Bank and over fears they may be used against Palestinians.

The move would affect hundreds of weapons handed out to settlers by the army at the start of the second intifada, or Palestinian uprising, which erupted in September 2000, the paper said.

Defence ministry figures published in 2003 show that Jewish settlers in the West Bank possessed around 8,000 weapons, including submachine-guns, light machine-guns and rifles.

The army said in a statement that it would only be collecting weapons "which are not currently in use and are being held in storage. This is part of the effort to tackle the problem of weapons theft."

The collection will be "starting soon," a military source said, without specifying a date.

Yediot said the decision came as a result of the improved security situation in the past two years, and also over concerns about settlers taking the law into their own hands and shooting any Palestinians they perceive as a threat.

The collection is likely to begin in settlements in and around the southern city of Hebron, it said.

"You have to remember that in the last two years it has become significantly quieter," a military source told the paper. "Of course, if a need arises, we will return the weapons to the residents, but with supervision."

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